Business Confidence is Up

According to Economy.com's latest business confidence survey, business confidence jumped again during the week of April 25th. On a weekly basis, it is back to where it was at the start of the year, and on a 4-week moving average basis, it is now off only 10%. This is good news indeed.

Business confidence fell to its lowest level at the start of the Iraq War, the 4-week moving average was down more than 40%. Businesses are particularly upbeat regarding current business conditions, although their assessment regarding prospects six-months hence is also improving strongly.

Confidence has improved most in North America and is now the strongest among all nations. European business confidence is lagging, but it is showing steady improvement. Asian business confidence is very low.

Confidence is improving across all industries, including travel. Confidence has lagged a bit in the healthcare industry, perhaps reflecting SARS and mounting nationwide difficulties with surging medical malpractice premiums.

Businesses are more upbeat regarding everything from hiring to equipment investment. Sales remain soft, but businesses are reporting some recent improvement in demand as well.

Let's hope this trend continues.

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